Doctor Robert by The Beatles Songfacts Doctor Robert by The Beatles Songfacts Songfacts This is about Doctor Robert Freymann, a "Speed Doctor" in New York who supplied many celebrities, including The Beatles, with drugs. Reportedly, Dr. Freymann, who died in 1987, treated patients with injects of amphetamine-spiked vitamin B-12 from his Manhattan East 78th Street clinic. It should be noted that most Americans, due to diet and convenience culture, suffer from a vitamin B deficiency, and so an infusion of B vitamins feels like a "pick me up" all by itself, which is why many popular "energy drinks" (Red Bull, Monster, etc.) have this in the ingredients. The Beatles recorded this on Sunday, April 17, 1966. Two days later, they chose Take 7 to overdub all the vocals. >> Suggestion credit: Ben - Cheverly, MD John Lennon did indeed peg this song as autobiographical, stating in interviews that he was the one who carried a pocket full of pills on tour.

However, both he and Paul McCartney deny going to this specific doctor, but say that this song was kind of a piss-take at the idea, which struck them as funny. John's vocals are double-tracked and then split into two slightly out-of-phase stereo channels to simulate a trip on drugs. Also, the pivot to the key of B during the bridge gives a sudden blissful shot to the song. American copies of Revolver didn't include "Doctor Robert," " I'm Only Sleeping " or " And Your Bird Can Sing ," but these three songs appeared two months earlier in that country on the Yesterday and Today album. Revolver | The Beatles Tomorrow Never Knows The Beatles' seventh album was released in early August 1966. Following the release of Rubber Soul the group had embarked on what was to be their final UK concert tour and following a lengthy break, they returned to Abbey Road to record continually for three months. The first recordings released from these sessions, engineered by Geoff Emerick, was the single "Paperback Writer" and "Rain" and those tracks gave an indication of what was to come. Having longer in the studio had paid off with greater creativity and experimentation and with John and Paul in fine form as writers.

George also made his mark with three of his compositions appearing on a Beatles album for the first time. Prior to the album's release, the band had set off on a short tour of Western Germany, prior to flying to Japan then the Philippines and finally to the USA for what turned out to be their final gigs, the last of which took place on 29thAugust 1966 at Candlestick Park, San Francisco The distinctive album sleeve design was the work of Klaus Voormann, an old friend from their Hamburg Days. The album entered the UK chart at no. 1 where it enjoyed seven weeks in that spot out of an impressive overall run of 34 weeks. The album released in the US was almost identical - The sleeve looked the same but the album only included 11 tracks. The reason for this was that Capitol had already released three of the songs on a collection issued in June titled "Yesterday...And Today". Following a five week stay at # 1, this album was knocked off the top spot by "Revolver" which then spent six of its 77 week chart life in that position.

NME Friday, July 29, 1966 The latest Beatles album 'Revolver' certainly has new sounds and new ideas, and should cause plenty of argument among fans as to whether it is as good as or better than previous efforts. One thing seems certain to me - you'll soon all be singing about a 'Yellow Submarine'. This has been chosen as one 'A' side to be released as a 45 next week, along with the ballad 'Eleanor Rigby'. qV4TjZixq_8 The Making Of Revolver "Their ideas, now, were beginning to become much more potent in the studio, and they would start telling me what they wanted, and they would start pressing me for more ideas." GEORGE MARTIN "We were having more fun in the studio, from Revolver. Rubber Soul, as it was building up it was getting more experimental. The songs were getting better. More interesting... So that's where we were going." RINGO "One day, tape op got the tape on backwards, went to play it and it __...' - Bloody hell, it sounds Indian!'." PAUL "We suddenly thought, 'Hey, what does a record do?

It revolves. Great!'. You know - and so it was a Revolver." PAUL "Musically, I felt we were progressing in leaps and bounds. Some of the stuff on this and the Rubber Soul album was brilliant. There was nothing like it." RINGO "He'd come up with things like, 'Well, have you heard an oboe?', ' - No, which one's that?'. 'It's this one'. That would be nice. So, it was really we grew together." JOHN "It was on Revolver that, of course, we have the track Tomorrow Never Knows - which was a great innovation." GEORGE MARTIN "That's the first record with backwards music on it; before Hendrix, before The Who, before any f**ker." JOHN Lisa 21 Jan 2013 Here, There and Everywhere was one of the first Beatles songs I ever knew, and it's how I first got into them. Hair peace 1969 8 Jan 2013 The Beatles experimented with new sounds and instruments. They invented new sounds and techniques people still use today.

caSper Pepperlane 8 Jan 2013 oh, that the Beatles could have remained live just a nother couple years when Jim Marshall brought forth his beautifully loud amplifiers! The Beatles w/ The Jimi Hendrix Experience as an opener, anyone????? Zero McCartney I think that this is the best album ever. It's so amazing divbeatles_fans the picture of album is funny The Nowhereman ... 8 Jan 2013 I love this album! I love Love You To, I Want To Tell You, and Tomorrow Never KNows. drybones JPGR6370 9 Dec 2011 I love this album! It's my favorite! My favs on this album are here,there, everywhere, for no one, taxman and she said she said and the album cover is awesome! :) APPLEBONKERS 9 Jun 2011 Few things in the universe are as magical as listening to "Revolver"; the band's first perfect album. jarydd 10 May 2011 such an amazing album, I always disagreed with George though when he said Rubber Soul & Revolver could have been Volume 1 & 2 of the same album.

To me Revolver is a clear progression from Rubber Soul, it has a very different atmosphere. What do you guys think? floortom i want this for xmas A Day in the Li... 11 Feb 2011 This album is so great...every song is really fantastic...I love Tomorrow Never Knows, She Said She Said, I'm Only Sleeping and Eleanor Rigby LordDiego Can you imagine Revolver + Paperback Writer / Rain...? Only Beatles could do it... spitsoulsta Beatles_Nerd 9 Sep 2009 Sgt. Pepper was Revolver with new techniques. Revolver (and Rubber Soul) were the turning point of the career of the Beatles. They expressed new maturity in their music. No wonder revolver is one of the most critically acclaimed albums of all times! peto love Ringo on "She Said She Said" & "Rain", one of his best interpretations ricardoperu El mejor disco de todos los tiempos ME 9 Aug 2009 I was 16 when Revolver came out, living in Columbus, Ohio. Revolver sounded like Rubber Soul a bit and then... Tomorrow Never Knows... tomorrow was never the same after that.

Chris Jude 9 Aug 2009 Hello Ringo and Sir Paul!Klaus Voorman certainly did a masterpiece when you commissioned him on this piece! I wonder how much this artwork would auction for? My guess is $5,000,000! It's my favorite album cover! The US Capitol Albums Date: 14 May 1995 16:34:20 -0400 copyright by Frank Daniels, 1995 Capitol Records in the USA joined itself with Electrical and Musical Industries (EMI) in 1955, forming "The Greatest Recording Organisation in the World." In 1963, Capitol featured such popular artists as Nat "King" Cole and the Beach Boys. The surf and drag sound was still very much "in." Music coming to the US from England was "out." As nearly every Beatles fan knows, no British artist had ever made it big in America. Capitol knew this, and they were unwilling at first to take a chance on the Beatles. Consequently, the group's first four singles and first album were not issued by Capitol in the US.

In fact, "Love Me Do" wasn't issued at all as a single in the States until 1964. But shortly before the release of With the Beatles and the group's fifth single, Capitol bought in. They issued bumper stickers, stand-ups, pinback buttons, and a lot of other promotional gimmickry as part of their "The Beatles are Coming!" campaign. Get it? "The British are coming!"--Paul Revere's cry. Capitol executives even posed wearing Beatles wigs, at one point in time. At the end of 1963, the first US copies of "I Want to Hold Your Hand" reached radio stations, and what remains is a matter of record. (I.e., "the rest is history.") However, some fans today are discovering for the first time that the US issued albums that were different than the British issues, sometimes VERY different. In fact, this was true in quite a few countries. France issued EP's (4 songs each) instead of singles until 1967. Japan's first few albums were different from those in England, and they issued a large number of singles and EP's that were not released in England. A few German releases were different.

Several countries issued different "Greatest Hits" collections (Denmark, Australia, Germany) that were not issued in England or in the US. But the US releases seem to have attracted a lot of attention over the years. This is a chronicle of those releases. Cracking the Code First: how to read the Capitol prefixes. If you find an old Capitol album, you'll see the record number divided into a prefix (from 1 to 4 letters) and a number. For example, you might find a copy of Meet the Beatles numbered ST-2047. The number is the actual release number. Capitol started numbering at 100, with some of their subsidiaries (like Tower) starting at higher numbers (such as 5000 for Tower and 3350 for Apple). By 1968, their regular issue albums had reached 2999. From 3000 to 9999 were reserved for subsidiaries. So they started over at 100. That's why the White Album is number 101! In about 1972, the numbering reached 999 and they jumped ahead to 10000.

So albums like Rarities have higher numbers. The prefix is composed of letters. If the record is in stereo, then the first letter is "S." No letter corresponds to a mono recording. The next letter is the price code. The prices changed over the years, of course. "T" was the standard main line record, so you'll find a lot of "T's" among Beatles issues. If there are other letters, it means there was some kind of special packaging, such as a boxed set, gatefold cover, booklet, etc.. The fourth letter denotes the packaging, although apparently this was loosely applied. The next to last letter (in a batch of 3 or 4) denotes the number of records. "SMAL" represents a stereo issue with one record. "SWBO" is a stereo issue with two records. "STCH" is a stereo issue with three records. "TGO" would be a mono issue with seven records, although the Beatles never released such a thing! The Records Meet the Beatles!

T-2047 or ST-2047 The album starts off with the Beatles latest single, "I Want to Hold Your Hand," followed by its US b-side, "I Saw Her Standing There," and its UK b-side, "This Boy." Since mono mixes of the UK single had been sent to Capitol, there are two songs on this album which appear in "rechanneled" stereo. Several songs were removed from the With the Beatles album (to appear later), but the rest of the selections for Meet the Beatles! come from With the Beatles and appear in the same order as they do on the UK album. The album's front cover features the same picture of the Beatles in half-shadow as does the UK album, but US copies are tinted blue. The cover blurb falsely claims that this was the "first" album by the group. Apparently, Capitol wanted American fans to ignore the release on Vee Jay records.

The Beatles Second Album T-2080 or ST-2080 Capitol obtained from Parlophone (in England) a copy of the "She Loves You" single (that song, plus "I'll Get You") and stereo mixes of the songs from the British "Long Tall Sally" EP. The b-side of "Can't Buy Me Love," namely, "You Can't Do That," also appears on this album. As before, the songs from singles appear in rechanneled stereo. Two of the Long Tall Sally EP songs, the 3 single sides, and the remainder of the With the Beatles album were collected into this l.p., which makes somewhat of a nice mix. In fact, this was the first instance of songs being released first in America. The two EP songs weren't issued in England until 2 months later, and their UK release was mono only. In fact, the mixes for "Komm, Gib Mir Deine Hand" were also in Capitol's possession, but they held them back until the next album. The Beatles were hot, and the album shot to #1, like its predecessor had.

Something New T-2108 or ST-2108 The Beatles first film, A Hard Day's Night, was released through United Artists, who apparently produced the film so that they would have the right to issue the soundtrack album! Due to a licensing tangle, however, Capitol was able to issue all of the Hard Day's Night songs. Some of these they issued as singles only, while others are featured on this album and Beatles '65. The contract allegedly prevented Capitol from calling the album "Hard Day's Night." This proved to be no problem for Capitol. In fact, United Artists never received stereo mixes of the songs, so Capitol was able to present in stereo selections that UA issued only in mono and fake stereo. All in all, eight songs from the Hard Day's Night album combine with the two remaining Long Tall Sally EP songs and "Komm Gib Mir Deine Hand" to form this album, the whole of which is in true stereo. The songs are not in order, however; in fact, the HDN songs on side two of this album are in reverse order to the British l.p..

Three songs, "Hard Day's Night," "I Should Have Known Better," and "Can't Buy Me Love," did not appear on a Capitol album for some time. One song from the British album would appear on Beatles '65 later in the year. Note: The German song had not been released in the UK at the time. This album was kept out of the #1 spot by Hard Day's Night, the UA release. Beatles Story TBO-2222 or STBO-2222 Vee Jay records was successful in marketing an album of interviews. This success prompted others to get into the act, including Capitol. Beatles Story features a spread of photos as well as interviews with the Beatles and others. This album was promoted as telling the story of the Beatles--their rise to fame, so to speak. The album sold well...VERY well for an interview album. And it was a two record set, to boot! By this time, the Beatles had been such a boon to Capitol that the company opened another factory-- its third--this one in Jacksonville, IL. That factory is still open today, pressing CD's.

Beatles '65 T-2228 or ST-2228 A new single, "I Feel Fine" and "She's a Woman," was being issued in England, along with an album, Beatles For Sale. The left over song from HDN, "I'll Be Back" was combined with the two songs from the single and 8 songs from For Sale to become Beatles '65 in the USA. Even the order is essentially the same as in England. As always, on the stereo album the two single tracks were in rechanneled stereo. The rest of the album is in true stereo on the stereo release. Another #1. The Early Beatles T-2309 or ST-2309 Capitol had won its war with Vee Jay records. Therefore, it could now issue the Please Please Me album (which Vee Jay had essentially issued as Introducing the Beatles). Capitol removed two songs from the album, "Misery" and "There's a Place"--apparently to issue later. "There's a Place" did wind up on a "Star Line" single, but neither song showed up on a US album until 1980!

Capitol also issued "From Me to You" as a single on the Star Line label. Beatles VI T-2358 or ST-2358 Maybe YOU can count to six, but someone at Capitol couldn't! This is their SEVENTH Beatles album release. The usual explanation is that Beatles Story wasn't counted. The remaining songs from Beatles For Sale are on this album, but there's some new material as well. The Beatles recorded two songs for the American market, both of which appear here. These are "Dizzy Miss Lizzy" and "Bad Boy." Also, the b-side of their newest single, "Yes It Is," was included on Beatles VI (in rechanneled stereo, of course). Capitol also got the jump on the Help! album by issuing two songs slated for that album, "Tell Me What You See" and "You Like Me Too Much." True, "Dizzy Miss Lizzy" wound up on the Help! album in the UK, too. But apparently it replaced "Wait" at the last moment. At the time, "...Lizzy" was prepared just for Capitol. Another hot Beatles release, of course!

The photo layout from this album also wound up in Australia on one of their "greatest hits" releases. Help! (soundtrack) MAS-2386 or SMAS-2386 What a coup! Capitol selected the seven Beatles songs from the UK Help! album which were in the film, padded the rest of the album with George Martin instrumentals, added a bunch of pictures from the movie, and hiked the price by a buck. What was the result? Another big hit, of course. "Ticket to Ride" is in rechanneled stereo on this l.p.. The bit of "James Bond Theme" which appears before the title track became a popular introduction to the song. It appears on the US releases of 1962-1966 as well. The photos on the front cover were rearranged so that Paul appears to be pointing to the Capitol logo. Coincidence? Anyway, the pix had already been accidentally reversed, so whether here or in the UK, the semaphore is gibberish. Or is it a secret message? Rubber Soul T-2442 or ST-2442 Two of the four left over Help!

songs, "I've Just Seen a Face" and "It's Only Love," found their way onto the US Rubber Soul album. The other two songs were released as a single. By now, US albums were beginning to resemble their British counterparts, at least to some extent, although the United States did receive its own special mixes of quite a few songs. On this album, "The Word" and "I'm Looking Through You" (stereo mixes) are noticibly different than in England. This album hit #1 in the US without any singles being issued from it. Common now in the UK, maybe, but not here! Two of the songs from the UK album, "Nowhere Man" and "What Goes On," were issued as a single in the US. Yesterday...and Today T-2553 or ST-2553 Take a few left over Rubber Soul tracks ("Drive My Car," "Nowhere Man," "If I Needed Someone," and "What Goes On"). Add two old Help! tracks that had been issued as a single ("Yesterday" and "Act Naturally"). Pour in a single from late '65 ("We Can Work It Out" and "Day Tripper").

Then supply a bonus of three songs from the still-unreleased NEW British album ("I'm Only Sleeping," "Doctor Robert," and "And Your Bird Can Sing"). What do you get? The appropriately-titled Yesterday...and Today, another popular album in the good old USA. The front cover to the "new" album was the same shot that was used in England to promote the "Paperback Writer" single: an unfinished photograph of the Beatles wearing butcher smocks and holding cuts of meat and dolls. The picture was part of a group of three that was meant to shatter the Beatles' image. Instead, this picture became an instant collectors' item! Radio stations began to remark about the album immediately, and Capitol issued a withdrawal notice before the actual release date. Some copies (less than 60,000) got out with the original cover intact. Many more were reissued the same week with a new photo (the Beatles around a steamer trunk) pasted over the original one. Later copies feature only the "trunk" cover. The pause in Capitol's plans didn't stop this album from hitting #1. NOTE: "We Can Work It Out" and "Day Tripper" had been mixed for stereo for an Australian album.

So they ARE in true stereo on this album. NOTE 2: Most releases on vinyl feature the three Revolver songs in rechanneled stereo. Capitol didn't want to wait the week it would take to get the stereo mixes. But all tape copies, the "record club" issues from the late 60's and 70's, and some later copies of the album, do feature the Revolver songs in stereo--although the mixes differ from the UK mix, as usual. Revolver T-2576 or ST-2576 This album lacks the three songs that were issued on Yesterday...and Today. Otherwise, it very much resembles the British release. Perhaps Capitol's mistake of having rushed Y&T to release only to have to withdraw it prompted them to think carefully. Or maybe they just decided not to include "Paperback Writer" and "Rain" on this album. For whatever reason, the US Revolver is almost the same as the UK issue. Of note, however, is the fact that by now (in the US) stereo copies were selling at the same rate as mono copies. Germany had already abandoned mono. Now, the United States was on their way toward doing so. Sgt.

Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band MAS-2653 or SMAS-2653 Just like the British release? Almost. This album lacks the "dog cut" and "inner groove" at the end. Otherwise, even its gatefold cover and insert roughly resemble the UK issue. In the Summer of '67, this album hit #1 without any singles being issued to promote it. Issued with a red/pink/white dayglo inner sleeve. Magical Mystery Tour MAL-2835 or SMAL-2835 When Parlophone and the Beatles served notice that they intended to release MMT as an EP, Capitol refused. They had tried twice to sell Beatles EP's; both tries were dismal failures. Rather than being burned again, they sent a representative to England to collect songs for this album, including a fresh mix of "Strawberry Fields Forever." The last three songs on the album, however, were issued in rechanneled stereo on the album, following Capitol's usual practice. They didn't request stereo copies of the single songs (except SFF and Hello Goodbye), and they didn't get any.

"Hello Goodbye," "Strawberry Fields Forever," "Penny Lane," "Baby, You're a Rich Man," and "All You Need Is Love" round out the album. This was the last Beatles album in the US that was available in both mono and stereo. The mono copies are more difficult to find than the stereo records, by possibly a 5 to 1 margin. The album sure looks nice in 12" size...it came to be copied in the UK, being issued there in 1976 (with a prototype circulating before then). Germany replaced its MMT EP with the album in 1971. The Beatles SWBO-101 Ah, two whole albums of Beatles music! The story (according to Beatles Book #66) is that Capitol had treated the whole album to compression and limiting, but that George Harrison discovered this and attempted to undo their treatment. On "Cry Baby Cry," you can detect a "bad spot" (at "by the children") where something went wrong in the process.

The album featured a stark white cover with raised letters: "The Beatles." There was print only on the spine (title and catalog number) and on the back cover (one word: "stereo"). The UK issue opened from the top; the US issue took a more standard approach by opening from the side. Inside were goodies: a poster with lyrics on one side and four color photos (slightly smaller than the UK issue). There was also a tissue paper to keep the photos from being damaged. The UK issue featured black sleeves which were not included here. This record was the first Beatles album release on their new label, Apple, and the record labels indicated that the album was manufactured by Capitol but issued by Apple. Finally, the albums were numbered, with each factory numbering differently. There were reportedly 12 copies of #1 (I know of two), and they numbered over 3,200,000 of them. Collecting variations in numbering style can be an interesting sideline. Another variation, usually not noticed, deals with the "banding" of the album. When Sgt. Pepper was released in England, the tracks were not separated (banded), but they ran all together. The US album WAS banded.

When this album was released, apparently there was considerable sweat over whether the album should be banded: you'll find some copies banded and others unbanded. Even copies pressed at the same factory differ in this way. Another #1 without singles. Yellow Submarine SW-153 The Beatles wanted to issue another EP, but this time even Parlophone was against it. Two old songs, four new songs, and some George Martin instrumentals fill this album, which sold well despite containing very little new material. The liner notes on the back cover are different from those on the British album, which was the last one to be issued in England in both mono and stereo. In the majority of nations now, stereo records were playable on mono machines, rendering mono "obsolete." Abbey Road SO-383 The Beatles deliberately did not list "Her Majesty" at the end of side 2. But no one informed the industry moguls in the US. As a result, the song was added to the eight track's listing and to SOME of the albums. You'll find the song added to some covers and some labels as well. It was eventually removed again from the cover. Thus, the album again differed ever so slightly from the British release. Hey Jude!

SO-385 or SW-385 This album, a collection of oldies, was originally entitled Beatles Again, and the first pressings display that title on the labels. "Can't Buy Me Love," "I Should Have Known Better," "Paperback Writer" and "Rain," "Lady Madonna," "Hey Jude" and "Revolution," "Ballad of John and Yoko" and "Old Brown Shoe," and "Don't Let Me Down" made it onto this album, although not in that order. All of the songs are in true stereo here, with some of them being mixed for stereo especially for this album. Oddly, there were four other songs that Capitol COULD have included here but did not: "Hard Day's Night"; "Misery"; "There's a Place"; and "From Me to You." Apparently they were leery of including HDN on any album at all! Two b-sides, "I'm Down" and "The Inner Light" were apparently also not favored by Capitol when compiling this l.p.. The Hey Jude! album was popular enough that it was issued in England in 1979. At around the time of this album's release, Capitol opened their FOURTH factory...

in Winchester, VA. Within a couple of years, they phased out the use of their factory in Scranton, PA. Let It Be AR-34001 This album was released in conjunction with United Artists, who owned the film rights. In quite a few countries, the album was released as a boxed set, with a special booklet. In the US, the album was issued with a gatefold cover...and a red label, marking the end of the Beatles. Interestingly, all of the Beatles' original US releases differ in some way from those in England. This album went out of print in 1975 for three years. Beatles Christmas Album SBC-100 "BC" stands for "Beatles Christmas." This album was available to fan club members for $2. It contains all of the messages from their Christmas flexi-discs, including the 1963 message, which had not been released in the USA until this time.

1962-1966 and 1967-1970 SKBO-3403 and SKBO-3404 Four records of "greatest hits." One record company was issuing unauthorized ("bootleg") issues of Beatles compilation albums. These records, the Alpha Omega series (Vol. 1-3), were selling quite well, including being hawked on TV for a time. Capitol/Apple countered with "official releases." The Beatles themselves participated in selecting the tracks, the pictures, and the colors. The track listing (insert) was compiled by Capitol and is deceptive. "Hard Day's Night" was making its first appearance on a Capitol album. Likewise for "From Me to You." These are referred to as belonging to the Help! album, where (in the US) instrumental versions of those songs appear! It is noteworthy that Capitol had so far not obtained stereo mixes for any of the songs released as singles. Even "Hard Day's Night" appears in fake stereo on the album. The only exception was "From Me to You," which for all I know Capitol had a stereo Copy of since 1965.

Also, "Hello Goodbye" turned up in mono on the compilation, for reason unknown. Beatles Special Limited Edition This 9 album boxed set featured Apple copies of various Beatles albums. It was inevitable that boxed sets would be issued, but how these particular albums were chosen is not known. Since several albums were omitted, reason dictates that there was SOME strategy involved. NOTE: There was a 17 record set, containing all the albums except Let it Be, but that boxed set was given as a promo item to Capitol sales representatives. It was not commercially available. Rock and Roll Music SKBO-11537 Two records of previously released material, stereo- reversed by George Martin. This album featured a new stereo mix of "I Call Your Name" and the first US stereo appearance of "I'm Down." The album cover was a horrible silver thing, reminding people of the 50's. John Lennon had offered to draw them a cover, but EMI stupidly rejected the idea. Oh well. Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl SMAS-11638 The first album of new Beatles materials in 7 years. Capitol had planned to issue live albums in the 60's.

They had recorded two Hollywood Bowl concerts for that purpose. Despite talk, up through 1971, the album wasn't released until '77. For many, it was worth the wait. The only problem _I_ have with it is the mention of the Bay City Rollers in the liner notes! Love Songs SKBL-11711 Another two record set built around a theme. The only thing new here is a new mix of "Girl." The package, with a lyric book, was somewhat attractive. Even this album went gold in the US. In 1980, this album was split into two "budget line" albums. Picture and Colored Vinyl Discs Sgt. Pepper's ... (picture disc) SEAX-11840 There was a picture disc craze on, and Capitol got into it. The disco film called Sgt. Pepper's... was hot in the USA, so this was chosen as the first "special" release. In Canada, the album appeared on marbled vinyl. In other countries, the picture discs were slightly different. The Beatles (white vinyl) SEBX-11841 Colored vinyl was also "in".

For America, this meant red, white, and blue. This was the white one. 1962-1966 (red vinyl) SEBX-11842 Red vinyl release of the 1973 album. 1967-1970 (blue vinyl) SEBX-11843 Blue vinyl release of the 1973 album. Love Songs (gold vinyl) SEBX-11844 This album was never released in the USA, but it came out in Canada. Oddly, some copies were sealed together with British (leftover?) copies of the "Get Back" book that had originally been included with the Let it Be album in England. I have personally seen two such copies. Abbey Road (picture disc) SEAX-11900 The last of the Beatles "special issues" on Capitol. Since the craze was dying down somewhat, this one is a little harder to find than the Sgt. Pepper picture disc. A Hard Day's Night SW-11921 Capitol acquired the rights to ALL United Artists releases. They promptly issued this album on their purple label.

Oddly, they decided NOT to include stereo versions of any of the songs. The Beatles songs are in rechanneled stereo. Let It Be SW-11922 Now, in 1979, this album was being issued again. Between late '75 and this album's release, pirate copies had been surfacing. This reissue no longer features a gatefold cover but WAS issued with a poster (of the front cover shot). Rarities SHAL-12080 This album grew out of a project called "The Beatles Collection," a boxed set of all of the British album releases. There was an extra album called Rarities included with the boxed set. Old b-sides mostly...non-album tracks. The album was not supposed to be issued commercially, but Parlophone changed their minds. Capitol also decided to issue the album...as a budget line release. They made some copies of this budget release and were ready to issue it commercially. Along came a bootleg album called "Collectors' Items," which featured a more attractive cover and better track selection. Capitol modified its track selection immediately and changed their cover ideas.

The "butcher cover" shot was included on the inside as an added attraction. This album features the first stereo release of "Penny Lane" and "Sie Liebt Dich" in the US. "Misery" and "There's a Place" were also included here in stereo...for the first time on Capitol (although the Vee Jay record did feature stereo versions). "The Inner Light" was featured here in mono; a stereo version would be made available in England only a year later. Reel Music SV-12199 The ugly cover notwithstanding (and most people thought so), this is actually a fine release from Capitol. They released first their "Movie Medley," which charted well. Then they sent to Parlophone for true stereo copies of all the songs. Finally, "Hard Day's Night" and "Ticket to Ride" would appear in the US in stereo! And nice-sounding stereo it was, too. The long (British) version of "I Am the Walrus" is here too. Finally, there is a new mix of "I Should Have Known Better" which fixes the break in the harmonica intro that's found on the previous stereo mix.

Gold vinyl promos were sent out, the album was promoted on TV and in other ways (That's what those Beatles "chu-bops" were for.), and it sold well. Twenty Greatest Hits SV-12245 Featuring stereo versions of such songs as "I Want to Hold Your Hand" and "I Feel Fine," this greatest hits set sold somewhat well in the US. In other countries, slightly different versions of the album were issued, to reflect what songs had charted best in those countries. Sessions ST 12373 Again showing a trend of improvement, Capitol planned to issue an album of truly new tracks and alternate versions. It was to be a worldwide release. One track, "Leave My Kitten Alone," which was to be a single, circulated on the radio. But the legal problems between the Beatles and Capitol/EMI prevented the release of the album...for at least 10 years! Soon, maybe. If you can't wait, there are always the bootleg copies. Past Masters C1-91135 In 1987-8, the Parlophone albums were issued in the US, to correspond to the CD issues. In addition, one new album came out.

This was the combination of the two Past Masters CD's. For the first time, "Yes It Is" and "This Boy" appeared in stereo in the US. Strangely, for a short time, three sets of "greatest hits" compilations were available in the USA. The album was a limited release; the CDs are supposed to follow it into obscurity, now that 1962-1966 and 1967-1970 have been reissued. Beatles Deluxe Box Set BBX1-91302 A boxed set containing all 13 of the US pressings of the British catalog plus Past Masters. The box was made of black finished oak. The first 6000 copies were numbered sequentially. Live at the BBC C1-31796 Ah, new material at last. Seven years was rough, but by the time this album was released, the majority of listeners weren't even buying Beatles records in 1977 when Hollywood Bowl came out! On the Vinyl An examination of the markings pressed into the trail-off, the surface of the vinyl between the last song and the paper label, will help identify which pressing of the record you have.

Factories Capitol has had several factories over the years. Two were in operation at the time when the Beatles began their career. These were Los Angeles, CA (the original and main office) and Scranton, PA. LA's factory symbol is a * (asterisk). The LA plant closed down during the 1980's. \ | / \ | / ---- ---- / | \ / | \ Scranton's factory symbol was a triangle in which I A M was written. Scranton used its 1950's style stampers on 1st pressings of the Early Beatles. A nostalgia thing? Scranton was phased out when the Winchester factory was opened (see below). Indeed, by mid '69, they had stopped pressing reissue Beatles records, although they did press copies of the new issues. For this reason, the Capitol albums pressed at Scranton from MMT back only appear on the rainbow label; there are no later issue Scranton copies. Scranton stopped making records altogether and closed down c.1973. The newest Beatles-related record I have from Scranton is a copy of Paul's "Hi Hi Hi" single.

/ \ / I \ / A M \ --------- In 1965, largely due to the Beatles' popularity, Capitol added a third factory at Jacksonville, IL. At first they used no factory symbol, but later used a 0 (looks like a zero or O). --- / \ | | | | \ / --- In late 1969, Capitol opened a factory in Winchester, VA. This factory seems to have made thinner records than the others did. [Scranton was noted for its "thicker" records which used more vinyl.] At about this time, Capitol decided to phase out the use of the Scranton factory. Winchester's symbol looks like a tipped over wine glass. /| ___ / | \ | \| As far as I know, the Scranton plant never made tapes, although tapes in the various formats were made at each of the other 3 plants. Matrix Numbers In the trail-off of a Capitol record from the 60's - 70's, you are likely to find something like this: ST - 1 - 2553 - B8 The first component is the prefix. "S" (after 1958) denotes stereo.

"T" is the price code (price codes "W", "M", and later "O" were also used on Beatles records.) If the record had inserts or a fold-open cover, two more letters were added. The third letter is the total number of records in the set (A=1, B=2, etc.) The fourth letter is the type of packaging. The second component is the side. (1, 2, 3, 4). The third component is the catalog number. The fourth component tells what set of stampers were used, as follows. From the 50's D was used to denote 1st press mono records. When a second dub of the master was made, N was used. In the 60's, F and G denote 1st issue mono records. P and T denote 2nd presses. For stereo records, A and B were used the first issue. W and X were usually used the second time, but sometimes H and J were used, as on the White Album.

[This may have been the case because the White Album's problem was actually the banding and not the sub-master.] In 1969, after stereo took over completely, Z began to be used for some first pressing (stereo) records. This letter became the convention of the 70's, occurring on most Apple issues. The number after the letter may have something to do with the actual stampers. So, B8 might denote the 8th stamper made from the first sub- master. NOTE: the Winchester factory never started with A or B when reissuing Beatles records. It is thought that they received their copies of everything from Scranton.

Question: On which Beatles album in the UK does the song 'Doctor Robert' appear?
Answer: REVOLVER